


To Give and Receive

by Aceofstars16



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Comfort, Cute Kids, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, I don't know what to tag this as it has like four different stories in it save me, Other, Pines Family, Stanuary, stan being a good boi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-26
Updated: 2019-01-26
Packaged: 2019-10-16 07:17:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17545172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aceofstars16/pseuds/Aceofstars16
Summary: Throughout his life, Stan has been comforted and has comforted others. These are four of those times.





	To Give and Receive

**Author's Note:**

> [Tumblr post](http://aceofstars16.tumblr.com/post/182308047133/stanuary-week-4-comfort-lzhqw-edfn-dqg-iruwk)

Stan blinked his eyes, trying to get rid of the stupid tears that were trying to form. He wasn’t supposed to cry. Pa had taught him that. Pines don’t cry. But that mantra didn’t help much. It only made him feel even more stupid as a tear fell down his cheek.

The idiot, the screw up, the dumb twin. Stan heard them all the time. He knew he should be used to the comments by now, but for some reason they still hurt. Maybe it was because Mrs. Fieldy complemented Ford so much…No…it was because everyone did. Stan was always compared to Ford, because Ford was a genius. Every teacher loved him, and they all thought Stan was an idiot. And even if they were right, it still hurt.

And Pa’s reprimands didn’t help either. Stan tried, he really did, but it was never good enough. Pulling his arms tighter around his legs, Stan tried to fight away the sadness. But it was a lot harder than fighting bullies, and he wasn’t exactly the best at that either.

A small bouncing on the bed jerked Stan out of his thoughts and he quickly looked up, wiping at his eyes, not wanting to show that he had been crying, especially not to Pa.

But it wasn’t Pa…it was Ma, which for some reason almost felt worse.

Ducking his head back into the legs, Stan felt more tears forming.

“Stanley, sweetheart…” A hand rested on his shoulder and he burrowed deeper into his legs.

“I’m sorry Ma, I…I’m sorry I’m not smart…I’m sorry I…I can’t…” Stan’s whole body started shaking and then he felt arms wrapping around him as he was pulled into a hug, which only made his sobbing grow stronger.

“Shhh…baby there is nothing to apologize for.” Ma’s voice was firm but kind, caring. She rocked him gently back and forth and Stan buried his head in her dress, wishing he could believe her.

“I…I try, I really do I just…I’m not smart.”

“That’s not true!”

Stan’s head jerked up as he heard his brother’s voice and saw that Ford was standing next to the bed. But as Stan met his eyes, he crawled onto the bed too.

“Yes it is…” Stan looked at his hands as he spoke, playing with a scab on his knuckle from the last fight he had gotten in defending Ford.

A hand rested on Stan’s shoulder, and he knew it was Ford, but he couldn’t force himself to look up. Ford and Ma were just trying to make him feel better, and he was grateful, but that didn’t change the facts.

“Stanford is right. Sweetie, you are smart, just in different ways.” Ma’s arms wrapped around him again, but Stan didn’t feel comforted.

“That’s just another way of saying I’m dumb…”

“Stanley…”

Then another pair of arms wrapped around him and Stan felt pressure building up in his chest.

“You aren’t dumb…but even if you were, there is no one I’d rather have as a brother.”

Biting his lip, Stan felt tears forming in his eyes again, even as he tried to push them away.

“And you will always be my free spirit.”

Ma held him closer as she spoke and a tear fell down Stan’s face as he closed his eyes and tried to let their words sink in. Maybe…maybe he wasn’t the smart kid, and maybe he wouldn’t be much compared to Ford but…maybe he would be okay. Because he had a mom and a brother who cared about him, and who liked him for who he was. Yeah…maybe he’d be okay…

Sweat trickled down Stan’s neck and he couldn’t hold back a groan. It was night time, it shouldn’t be this miserable, but the lack of sun hadn’t done much to get rid of the humidity that seemed to cling to this tiny town. Not only that but there weren’t really any good business opportunities here either. It wasn’t like he had chosen to break down here, but he had and now he was stuck until the Stanleymobile was fixed. And unfortunately for him the repairs had taken almost all of his remaining money. Which was why he was sitting in front of this gas station, trying to figure out where in the world he was going to sleep tonight.

The repair man had dropped him off at a motel but…Stan didn’t have that kind of dough on him. Sure, maybe he could steal a key and stay the night, but with a town this small that wasn’t a good idea. Someone would notice for sure and he didn’t exactly have a car to make a quick getaway. So, he was stuck here until he figured out what to do.

“Hi!”

Stan had been leaning against the brick building, but at the voice he jumped, resulting in his arms bumping painfully against the rough surface as he looked up to see who in the world was talking to him. But upon seeing the source of the voice, he didn’t even know how to respond. Because it was a little girl. Way to young to be talking to someone like him – who hadn’t taken a shower in a good week and hadn’t brushed his hair in just about as long.

“Uh…hi there, kiddo…”

The girl grinned at him and pointed to his feet.

“I like your shoes!”

Looking at his worn-out shoes, Stan had no idea why she would like them. “Umm…thanks?”

“I’m Amy! And this is Doodle.” She held up a small stuffed animal as she spoke, still grinning.

Stan stared at the animal, which looked like maybe it was a parrot at one point but it was so roughed up it didn’t look much like one now. Just like him he supposed.

“We thought you looked sad, and wanted to come cheer you up!”

For a second, Stan didn’t know how to respond. Why in the world would a child care about someone like him? Biting his lip, he couldn’t help but feel worried. Not for himself, but for this girl that was all alone, and that she was alone because she came to talk to him.

“That’s…real sweet of you kid, but shouldn’t you be with your parents or something?”

The girl pointed to the store. “Mom’s inside, we are going back home from visiting my grandpa!”

Man, were kids always this happy? Stan didn’t think he was this…excitable as a kid, but then again maybe he had been…he didn’t really like thinking about his younger days. They hurt too much.

“I know what you need!”

The sheer volume of the kid’s voice shook Stan and he quickly looked around. Sure, this was a little town but there could be dangers in even the smallest of towns. Heck some people might even consider him dangerous. But after a quick survey, no one seemed to notice the kid. Thank goodness.

Then something poked his cheek and he froze.

“What the-?”

“Sticker!” The girl held up a small book, grinning.

Stan reached up and peeled the sticker off of his face, a small laugh escaping his mouth as he saw the cartoon doughnut with the words “donut give up” on it.

“You smiled!”

Glancing back at the kid a small smirk grew in the corner of his mouth. “Well I am a fan of terrible jokes.” As he spoke, he put the sticker on his shirt.

“Here! I have another-“

“AMY!”

Stan jumped to his feet at the voice, his survival instincts kicking in. There were many times when quick reflexes saved his life. And, despite not knowing her, he found himself reaching out an arm as if to shield her from danger.

“What are you doing with this…”

Heart still pounding, realization slowly dawned on Stan. The scream had come from this woman, who was clearly the kid’s mother. There was no danger.

“He looked sad so I gave him a sticker!” The kid pointed at the sticker on Stan’s shirt and despite himself, he looked down at it and smiled, until the mother spoke again.

“Amy we have been over this, do NOT go talking to strangers.”

“But he-“

“No buts! Now come on.” Grabbing her daughter’s hand, the woman started pulling her away, despite the kid’s protests.

“Listen to your ma kiddo.” Stan tried for a smile, making a shooing motion. Knowing that – even though he hadn’t hurt the kid, someone else might have. She needed to learn sooner than later that misplaced trust could hurt you faster and harder than anything else. And a kid like her didn’t deserve that.

For a second, the girl and her mom both stopped – the latter clearly shocked that Stan seemed to be trying to help. Then the kid was being dragged away again, but before she got in the car, she waved at him.

“Bye Mister! Donut give up!”

A genuine laugh escaped Stan as he waved back. “I won’t.”

And then she was gone.

It was one of the most unexpected and strange interactions Stan had ever experienced, but he found himself smiling as the car disappeared down the road.

Taking a deep breath Stan looked around, taking stock of his situation again. There had to be some place he could stay…ah, a laundromat, perfect.

Picking up his duffle – which he had made sure to take from his car, just in case – he made his way towards the 24 store. Yes, it would be a rough night, but he could manage, he always did.

And as he sat down on an uncomfortable chair, he couldn’t help but look at the sticker again, a smirk playing on his face.

“Thanks kid…”

It was freezing. Sleet fell from the sky and Stan was starting to regret leaving the casino. But he had already been stretching his luck when it came to his loaded dice, so it was for the best. Even if his coat did practically nothing in this weather.

Pulling out a heat pack that he had been reusing for some time, Stan rubbed it quickly, trying to stimulate it again. Slowly, warmth started radiating from it and he stuffed his hands back in his jacket pockets, trying to warm his fingers up as best as he could as he hurried to his car.

Turning a corner, Stan saw the familiar red of his El Diablo and he fumbled with the various scraps in his pockets until he found the keys. But just as he pulled out the cold metal keychain, he froze.

For a moment, he thought his brain was just messing with him. He could’ve sworn he heard a whimper. But as paused to listen again, he didn’t hear anything. Frowning, he took another step towards his car when he heard it again. It was coming from the alley to his left.

Now, common street knowledge told him to keep walking. Nine times out of ten, crying was just a scam. He had never used it himself ‘cause he didn’t quite look the part but Stan knew plenty of gangs that used the tactic.

Shaking his head, Stan took another step, but then he stopped again as he heard a quiet word.

“Worthless…”

For a second, Stan was a kid again, huddling in the corner of his room after his pa had reprimanded him. Worthless…Stan knew that word all too well…

Closing his eyes, Stan tried to reason that it could still be a ploy. He should just keep walking. Just like everyone had done to him. Letting out a quiet curse, Stan shook his head. If it went bad, he might have to fight his way out of it but…if it was just a kid down on his luck well…he knew all too well that a small gesture might be the difference between life and death.

Backtracking a few steps, Stan carefully made his way towards to soft crying. But then his shoe crunched a patch of ice and he froze, as did the crying.

“W-who’s there?”

Geeze that voice sounded young.

“Relax, I’m not going to hurt you.” Stan said, taking a few more steps until he could see the kid a little better. But the ally was pretty dark and he kid had a hoodie pulled tight around his face.

“Wh-what do you want?”

Well that didn’t sound much like a scam, but Stan still looked around, not wanting to be taken by surprise. “What are you doing out in the cold like this?”

“W-why aren’t you answering my questions?”

Well, the kid wasn’t dumb. “That’s fair. My name is Stan and I…want a lot of things but nothing to do with you. But it’s a bit cold to be out here all alone, especially for someone your age.”

“I’m fifteen!”

The words were very defensive, but Stan found himself wincing for an entirely different reason. Fifteen…that was way too young…despite Stan only being maybe ten or so years older than that himself.

“Look kid, I’m just making sure you are…okay. That’s all.”

For a moment, there was no response, then the kid glanced up ever so slightly, as if trying to size up Stan. The dark of the night still didn’t show Stan much, but he did notice that the kid was shivering. And that’s when he realized he was shivering like crazy too, but despite that, he found himself pulling out his heat pack.

“Here. You look one second away from freezing to death.” Tossing it to the kid – whose shaky hands didn’t catch it, but quickly scooped it up from the ground – Stan tried to figure out what the heck he was supposed to do now.

Rubbing the pack in his hands, the kid looked at him again. “Why are you helping me?”

Stan almost snorted in mock amusement. That was the question wasn’t it? For a second, he opened his mouth, about to say something about taking his pack and going if the kid didn’t want help, but the words died in his mouth, only resulting in a puff of mist in the air.

“Cause being alone in an ally isn’t something a kid should deal with. I should know.” It was the brutal truth and Stan wished he could take it back as soon as he said it, so he quickly added. “But if you don’t want help, I’ll just be on my way and-”

“No!” The kid seemed to wince at the shout and he shrunk back in on himself.

“Alright, well…then can I take you anywhere? I got a car,” Stan gestured to the street, where the Stanleymobile was parked.

Silence.

Sighing, Stan rubbed his eyes. “Look kid, I’m freezing, and you’re freezing. So either get yourself to someplace warm or let me help you. I don’t really care either way.” The last part was a lie, but Stan wasn’t going to admit that.

“O-okay…” The kid slowly got up, and despite the heat pack, he was still shivering a bunch, not that Stan was much better.

Bunching up his shoulders and trying not to think about how idiotic this was, Stan lead the way to the car. Who was he to be offering help? Heck, he was the one living out of a car. There were so many other people more equipped to actually help this kid out. But…no one had and Stan knew the kid would probably get sick if he stayed out in the cold too long, heck by the end of this they both might catch a cold.

Opening the door, Stan slid into the driver’s seat and a moment later, the door opened and the kid hesitantly sat down and closed the door.

Turning the ignition, Stan turned up the heat as much as he could, though the air was just as cold as outside, at least for the first few minutes. But then it slowly started heating up and Stan saw the kid pressing himself as close to the vents as he could.

“It’s not the warmest but, beats outsi-“ Stan’s voice died in his throat as the kid looked at him and he saw his face for the first time.

There was a bruise on his cheek, a cut on his lip, and his entire right eye was black and blue.

As soon as Stan’s voice broke off, the kid looked away.

Trying not to think about it, Stan put the car into drive. “Okay kid, where am I going?”

Silence.

“I’m not taking you back to wherever that happened.”

A moment of hesitation, then, “I…I don’t know…”

“Okay…” Well this was going well. “You got a friend you can stay with, or…?”

More silence.

Sighing, Stan put the car back into park. “Look kid, I don’t know what happened, and you don’t have to tell me, but I don’t exactly have a place you can stay and I’m pretty sure letting you tag along on my travels would count as kidnapping so…you gotta give me something.”

The kid sighed, and hugged himself. “I…need someone who can help me…”

Biting his cheek, Stan hummed, trying to figure out how the heck he was supposed to know someone to help the kid when he didn’t really know any places in this city…well aside from where you could get a quick buck. And that wasn’t always legal…

Legal…crap. Stan tried to reason the idea away, but where else could he take the kid?

“Well…the police might be able to help?” Even saying it made the hairs on his neck stand up. Stan wasn’t exactly…excited about going willingly to the police. Granted, drug lords were worse than police but he really didn’t want to go to jail again.

For a moment, the kid seemed to freeze up and Stan started relaxing, maybe he was thinking of a different place they could go.

But then the kid said a quiet “okay” and Stan tried to squish down the unease in his stomach. He hadn’t done anything wrong in this city…at least not compared to other places. And the kid needed help…he could just drop him off and it would be fine.

“Right.” Nodding his head, and hoping the kid didn’t notice how tense Stan had gotten, he put the car into drive and pulled onto the road.

The trip through downtown was quiet, not that Stan minded too much. But as he pulled up to a building aptly marked “Police”, he felt a small weight in his chest, which only grew when the kid opened his door.

“Hey, kid!”

Freezing, the kid turned and looked at him.

“Whoever did that to you…they’re wrong.”

For a moment, the kid just looked at him. Then the smallest smile grew on his face only to fall as he ducked his head and headed inside.

Well, Stan tried. That was all he could really do…that and hope the kid turned out better than him.

“There.” Stan pulled the bandage tight, a quiet yelp sounding from Dipper as he did so.

“I really think a doctor should look at my arms…” Dipper said, holding up his newly bandaged limbs, but his normal thoughtful frown was marred by the bags under his eyes.

“Nah, I know how to fix up a busted arm, you just need sleep and you’ll be as good as new.” As he spoke, Stan couldn’t help but remember all the days when he had bandaged himself up. Sure, maybe it wasn’t the best route but…it usually worked out okay, and Dipper was young, he would be fine.

Opening his mouth, Dipper looked like he was about to argue, but then a yawn escaped his mouth and Stan laughed, shaking his head.

“Sleep. If you don’t feel better after that…maybe I can find a cheep doctor to con or something.”

Dipper’s frown turned into a half smile and he sighed. “Okay…and…thanks Grunkle Stan.”

A small knot of emotion tried to worm its way into Stan’s chest, but he did his best to ignore it. Heck, how had these kids come to mean so much to him?

“Yeah well…can’t let your parents think I didn’t look after you or anything.” It was a rationalization, and it definitely wasn’t the whole truth. But Stan had been telling half-truths for so long that it felt natural. Still, he couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle Dipper’s hair.

“Now get some sleep kiddo.”

Stan tried not to think about how Dipper smiled at him – a genuine smile – or how much it reminded him of Ford’s smile. But he couldn’t help but feel like he didn’t deserve it, he was just doing what anyone would do.

As he reached the living room, Stan saw Mabel holding a piece of paper in front of her, her brow furrowed in worry, or thought, or…something not normal for Mabel.

“What you got there, sweetie?”

Head shooting upright, Mabel quickly folded up the paper, shoving it into a book before snapping it shut. Only when it was closed did Stan realize it was Ford’s journal.

“Nothing! I just…how’s Dipper?”

A change in subject. That didn’t ease Stan’s mind at all, but he obliged. “He’s fine, just needs some sleep. You two will be running around making a mess of things in no time.” As he spoke, Stan tried for a grin – one that wasn’t entirely genuine, but that he hoped would help Mabel.

For a second, the distracted look on her face lingered, but then a small smile replaced it and she nodded before looking at the journal in her lap again. Yeah, something was definitely wrong.

“You start reading that book now too?” The journal was just about the last thing Stan wanted to talk about, even bringing it up reminded him of the basement and all of the secrets he was keeping from the kids. But it seemed to be connected to Mabel’s state, considering how she kept looking at it. And he was used to uncomfortable things; he could deal with a little if it meant helping his favorite niece.

Mabel shrugged. “A little…I was just writing down what happened today…”

Today. The play…maybe that’s what this was all about. “Hey, I thought your ‘sock opera’ was great. In my opinion, every play should end with fireworks!”

A genuine smile grew on Mabel’s face, but after a moment it faded again.

Okay, so much for the indirect approach. Walking forward, Stan sat down next to Mabel, which meant she had to reposition herself, but she really didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she tilted her head over and rested it on Stan’s shoulder.

Trying to swallow the emotion that such a simple motion brought on his chest, Stan placed a hand on her shoulder. “Something else on your mind, sweetie?”

Mabel took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. “I…Dipper needed help today and…I promised I would help him but…then I got caught up in my play and didn’t even listen to him until he got hurt and if I had just stopped for a second maybe none of this would’ve happened. And then I found this paper and…” Mabel bit her lip, and tears started forming in her eyes.

“Hey, now, it’s okay.” Stan couldn’t bear seeing Mabel looking so hurt and he quickly pulled her into a hug. “We all make mistakes, but it turned out okay, right?”

The only response was a small hum and Stan ran a hand through her hair, wishing he knew what to say to make her feel better. But he was better at fast lies than slow truths.

“You know…you and your brother have been here for months now and I’ve seen you two bicker quite a bit. But in the end, you always come around. In no time, you are laughing and joking around again.” As he spoke, a small lump of emotion grew in Stan’s throat. The similarities between him and Ford and Dipper and Mabel were uncanny…and painful. But he couldn’t dwell on that, not now. Not when Mabel was hurting. “So…today, might have been hard, but the important thing to remember is that Dipper is okay and from how he was acting on the ride home, I don’t think he blames you for any of it. Okay?”

There was silence for a moment, then Mabel’s arms wrapped around Stan and she squeezed him tight. “Thanks Grunkle Stan.”

Stan ruffled her hair – much like he had done for Dipper a few minutes ago. “No problem, sweetie. Now, how about we get some ice cream and watch Ducktective until bed time?”

Mabel pulled back from his embrace and grinned. “Okay!”

**Author's Note:**

> What is this? I actually WANTED to write again???  
> No, seriously, I've been in a writing slump but on Sunday I just...really wanted to write and it was really fun! I don't know like, anything about those random two kids I came up with...but they were fun to write. I just love Stan trying to act like he's all out for himself but deep down he cares a LOT...  
> I am also hoping to write another fanfic/draw another picture for the Comfort prompt (both for Stanuary and Forduary...) with older Stan and Ford but I wore myself out just finishing these on time so...hopefully next week...xD  
> If you read this fic, thank you!!! <3


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